Give them a single-use chat link instead of your phone number or a messenger ID. Show the link's QR code while you are still together: they open the chat in their browser without installing an app or signing up, and the chat ends at the time you set. Whether to stay in touch for longer is something you can decide after the trip.
A single-use link is a chat address you hand to one person: it can be opened for 24 hours, 3 days or 7 days, and by default it locks as soon as someone joins. FadeTalk lets you set two separate times for it, how long the link can be opened and how long the chat lasts, and on a trip that difference matters.
How to give someone a chat link instead of your number
The person you got talking to on a day tour or a long train ride may share your plans for two days and then go their own way. Swapping numbers or messenger IDs on the spot commits you both to contact long after the trip, before either of you has decided you want it. A link covers only the days you actually need.
- In the FadeTalk app, open the Links tab and tap New link.
- Open More options before anything else. Choosing a purpose creates the link straight away, so set Chat expires and Link expires first.
- Choose Travel as the purpose. The link is created and copied, and its QR code appears.
- Show the QR code for them to scan. The chat opens in their browser; they choose a display name and write to you.
Someone who joins in the browser appears as a guest and can report or leave at any time. If they are already signed in to FadeTalk, they join with their account instead. Either way, they see your nickname and a generated avatar, and your email and phone number are never shown.
Travel often means two languages. FadeTalk can translate messages, but only when both of you opt in to AI; otherwise translation is off. The app itself is available in English, Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish. If the other person also relies on a different messaging app, see how to chat with someone on a different messaging app.
Matching the chat timer to the rest of your trip
Link expires is how long the link can be opened: 24 hours by default, or 3 or 7 days. Chat expires is how long the conversation lasts once it starts, such as 1 hour, 1 day or 7 days. The time left stays visible in the chat.
| Contact you expect | Chat expires | Link expires |
|---|---|---|
| Sending a photo or a place name before you part | 1 hour | 24 hours |
| Sorting out tomorrow's plans | 1 day | 24 hours |
| The next few days of the trip | 7 days | 3 days |
| The rest of a week-long trip | 7 days | 7 days |
Link expires matters most when the other person is signed in: unless you two are connected, their chat ends when the single-use link expires or is burned. If they already use FadeTalk, set Link expires to cover the same days as the chat.
Ending a chat before the trip is over
Plans change. To end a conversation before its timer does, burn the link: in the Links tab, tap the burn icon on that link and confirm Burn link. Burning ends the chats of guests who joined through it, a signed-in visitor's chat ends too unless you are connected, and the address is never issued again. If someone makes you uncomfortable, you can also report or block them in the chat, browser guests included.
One detail matters on the road: if a browser guest leaves, or you decline or block them, a locked link opens again. Burn a link you no longer need rather than leaving it open.
When the timer runs out, the chat leaves both of your lists and its messages are deleted on schedule. Reported content, backups and legal holds are exceptions, and what the other person has already seen, saved or captured cannot be taken back.
After the trip: connect or let the chat end
Decide after the trip, not on the spot. If you do nothing, the chat ends on the timer you chose. If you both want to keep talking, share your personal link or your 5-character ID in the chat before it ends. The other person signs in to FadeTalk and opens the link or enters the ID, which sends you a request, and the chat opens when you accept. Once you are connected, you stay in each other's list after a chat ends, and a chat between you can run with no timer.
Your personal link contains your ID, and anyone with your ID can view your profile photo if you set one, so choose that photo with this in mind. You can still swap numbers at that point: a link does not replace the decision to give out your number, it covers the days before you make it.
How single-use links, personal links and burning work is laid out on the links page.